TDL&TH Chapter IX: Griffith’s Notes in Magic Class

The magic that exists in this world consists of the well-known source of magic in fantasy novels – mana.

In a multi-cellular organism similar to monkeys, humans, dogs, cats, etc. all have a sort of biological system akin to the cardiovascular system. However, the major difference is that the unusual liquid – which is mana – that circulates in its own circulatory system.

Similar to the cardiovascular system, its veins and arteries can be found anywhere, including how it would appear if the entire system was to be isolated from the other systems in the body. Furthermore, research has shown that unlike the cardiovascular system, the mana system has the capability to escape from the body in the process known as spellcasting, which is a voluntary action.

Mana has its own kind of organ akin to the heart. The organ is called the daemonium, which pumps the mana throughout the body and takes in the mana that is inhaled into the lungs or food and/or liquids throughout the digestive system. As to why this happens is due to mana’s strange quality of being in different states of matter similar to water.

When a spell is cast, the mana receives a certain neurotransmitter that causes it to manipulate particles. However, it is unknown as to why magic circles appear, although it has been hypothesized that it must have something to do with the configuration and activation of the magic system. Furthermore, it appears that being able to visualize and mentally process a spell (including its application) effects how the spell acts and how effective it is.

In situations in which a person is knocked out after casting a spell, the spell will continue to act as normal, unaffected by the user unable to maintain consciousness. Thus, a process can be inferred to be as:

– Intialization Phase: The caster mentally processes the spell and can alter the properties of the spell. The effectiveness and application of the spell is highly determined upon the visualization and lack of errors in the mental process as a whole. This phase ends once mana is spent, which may cause errors if this phase has not yet reach full completion. Chanting is another method of strengthening and reinforcing the mental process.

– Generation Phase: Spending mana, the particles undergo configuration and construct the magic circle (its size is determined by how much mana is used and the complexity being determined by what was mentally processed). Furthermore, magic circles may be integrated inside the main magic circle depending upon the severity of the spell (such as high class healing magic or highly destructive spells). If chanting is used, this phase will work in conjunction, thus causing the cast time to lengthened.

– Execution Phase: The spell is then cast. In chanting, the Execution Phase is essentially when the chant is fully completed.

These three phases occur in all forms of magic casting. When it comes to how it is executed, there are six main styles:

1) Chantless: The fastest method of casting magic when compared to using a medium (wand, staff, etc.), ritual, and chanting. The speed is limited only to how fast the caster’s mind can fully process and visualize the spell. In versatility, it surpasses grimoire casting due to the the caster being able to manipulate a spell’s property and application during the Initialization Phase.

2) Chanting: Depending on the length of the chant, it could be the slowest or fastest when it comes to chanting magic. Of course, the severe weakness of chanting magic is that it requires the chant to be spoken aloud.

3) Medium Casting: Using a wand, staff, or any other medium to cast. This sort of casting is highly determined upon the materials used to make the medium, which may augment the final result of the spell after the Execution Phase. In terms of speed, this is faster than chanting and ritual, but slower than the rest.

4) Grimoire: A combination of chanting and medium casting, grimoires are books that contain a collection of spells that have their effects detailed to an extreme degree in order to avoid ambiguity. Although a grimoire is indeed an enchanted item, the grimoire has an unlimited number of uses and will continue to have unlimited uses unless it has been destroyed by unnatural means (as in not being eaten by microscopic organisms, insects, or time).

5) Ritual: By far the slowest and the easiest to destroy or mess up, ritual casting will often require materials. Depending on the materials required, the ritual casting will only be useful for a single spell. Furthermore, it can be destroyed by interfering with the materials used for the ritual.

6) Enchanted Item: Enchanted items are objects, apparel, weaponry, and various other things that have been given a magical property. There are three categories enchanted items fall under: – Single Cast: Item will no longer have the enchantment after it has been used.– Multiple Cast: The item’s enchantment can be used a given number of times, but will no longer have it after the number reaches zero.– Continuous Cast: The item’s enchantment will not go away and will always stay in effect.

[Author’s Notes]

Decided to have some world building. Next chapter will be Griffith’s POV.